Prevent scheme instills ‘fear, suspicion and censorship’ at universities, report says

Just Yorkshire’s report, which cites interviews with Muslim students and academics, warns that the government’s anti-radicalisation scheme, Prevent, ‘fosters fear and censorship at universities’. In a report based on interviews with 36 Muslim students, academics and professionals, Just Yorkshire said the scheme had fostered a ‘policing culture’ in higher education and argued that it should be closed down immediately. It ends by saying that ‘A wide spectrum of our respondents articulated concerns in relation to surveillance, censorship and the resultant isolation felt by many’. Prevent, a voluntary programme, aims to divert people from terrorism before they offend. Just Yorkshire described the scheme, which police and ministers are considering making compulsory, as being ‘built on a foundation of Islamophobia and racism’, and said it was ineffective. The report said there was an ‘abundant body of evidence’ that Prevent officers had disrupted or closed down events about Islamophobia or terrorism that had been organised by academics and campaigners. A National Union of Students activist told researchers that students felt ‘sped upon’ when a Prevent officer demanded a list of names associated with the university’s Islamic society. The Home Office said Just Yorkshire’s report was not independent and questioned how its 36 interviewees were chosen. Ben Wallace, security minister, said: “It is no wonder people are concerned about Prevent when reports such as this peddle falsehoods and create myths. Anonymous and misleading quotes riddle this report. Are we really to be expected to stop safeguarding vulnerable people from being exploited because of this flawed report? “At its heart Prevent is about safeguarding. In the age of the internet and social media people of all backgrounds and religions are vulnerable to being exploited. The Prevent duty sits alongside the duties to protect people from sexual, bullying or criminal manipulation. “As a parent if my children were being targeted by bullies or terrorists or paedophiles at school I would expect that such occurrences were reported and dealt with. But this report seems to suggest such reporting be stopped when it relates to exploitation by terrorists. We all have a stake in delivering safeguarding in society and I am pleased we are seeing really successful results.”